At Ara'novor (To Defend)
by Angelwars
Summary: The 501st and the 212th are on a Republic peacekeeping commission on the planet Corellia, led by General Skywalker and Kenobi. During the commission, the army is attacked by a group of commando droids and are caught off guard. Amongst the chaos, Cody and Rex notice a child runs into the forest, they run after her. Consequently, Rex is injured mid-action, and all hells breaks loose.
1. Commission

_Location: Corel Village, Corellia_

_Sector: Corellian Sector_

_Time: 1500 (3:00 p.m. Spacetime)_

Corellia. It was a planet located in the galaxy's Core Worlds. The rotation had 25 hours, the orbital period was 329 days. _The atmosphere was breathable_. The primary terrain was Forests, Jungles, Oceans, and the Industrial urban. AND it was also known for its ace pilots and large starships! A place perfect for Commander Tano and General Skywalker! And now, it was perfect for the 501st, apparently. The sun shone low on a homey little village. The sky was a bright celeste blue, the grass was olive green; and the warm air.

_Mmmmm_. _Feels so good._ Rex had heard that Corellia had amazing weather, but THIS was better than any other planet they've ever been on. Thickly wooded forests, small villages, a giant city on the Northside of the planet. The huts in this village were made out of stone, with little cute windows and the townsfolk are kind and hospitable. A good mix of many immigrated species: Twi-Lek, Sullustans, and Rodians. The wildlife was peaceful for the most part and the weather's nice. The breeze blew across Rex's short blond hair, he tipped his head back and smiled to himself in content. At the moment, he was wandering around the village, giving orders here and there, with a bit of help from Fives.

Eventually, he found himself grabbing a datapad and checking how many crates they've unloaded so far. _Twenty, Good good._ Rex felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around, then he smiled when his eyes landed on his older brother, Cody. "Cody, it's been a while." Rex greeted him.

"Ha! Well, it hasn't been that long vod. We saw each other about a month ago. Remember," Cody smiled. He stood next to Rex and observed the troops who worked tirelessly to get the crates moving and placed down.

"Ehhh, I guess it hadn't been that long ago. Wow, felt like it was." Rex murmured.

A shiny approached him, "Where do the #15 crates go, sir?" He asked.

Rex pointed in the right direction. The shiny nodded and said thanks before he bounded off in that general direction. With the crate in tow. "Hmm, so, how's it been going with the 212th lately?" Rex asked.

This started a conversation about their battalions and their respective Generals'. Rex learned that General Kenobi had made sure that all 212th troopers had some kind of assigning buddy system, especially on commissions like this where they were in villages. "It was for safety reasons." Cody finished explaining. "Commissions in towns suck, you have to admit. If clankers show up, we have to be ready. It's hard to in tight spaces like this though." Cody gestured to the many buildings close together.

"True, true," Rex smirked and gazed over at Cody. "Who's your partner then?" he asked with amusement.

"Ah, you know the General. He always placed me with him. So why not be his partner for this new, uh, pairing system."

Rex chuckled and Cody smiled at him. Behind them, General Skywalker and Ahsoka left a hut, they started to walk in their direction. Ahsoka's hands were folded behind her back in a relaxed style.

"Snips. You should help the troopers out with the unpacking." Anakin suggested.

Ahsoka grinned. "Okayyy~ Master. Where are you going?" She watched as he kept going. "I need to speak with Obi-Wan. I'll be back, Okay."

Ahsoka makes a mock two-fingered salute. "Alright, sky guy." She turned her head. Her, special, padawan braid, swished to the side. Her baby blue eyes spotted Rex and Cody amongst the chaos of yellow and blue plastoid.

Ahsoka snuck over and tapped Rex's shoulder, with a small, teasing grin on her face.

"Heyy Rexter! How are things?" She asked.

Rex cocked his head and looked over his shoulder. "Ah, Commander. Unpacking, that's the plan. Then I think General Kenobi is going to have us get more supplies."

Ahsoka nodded and sighed heavily. "Welllll~ Won't that be fun." She murmured sarcastically. Rex snorted, along with Cody, and Ahsoka appeared in front of them.

"I love commissions an all, but sometimes they get really slow. Or is it just me!" She placed her hand on one of the crates and attempted to move it. That didn't work so she groaned in frustration. "Oh wait," Ahsoka snapped her fingers and then used the force to pull the heavy crate along. "Ha! There we go. Now I can at least help out. So I'll catch you guys later!"

Ahsoka smirked at the two clones before she scurried away. Cody chuckled. "What are you laughing about?" Rex questioned. He raised one eyebrow at his vod, who's lips quirked up more, "Ha, nothing." Cody mumbled. He leaned against a pillar.

It was now silent between them. They watched their brothers work. Cody flicked Rex on the side of his neck and Rex yelped in shock, "The kriff was that for?"

Cody only shrugged and pointed at the crates.

"Go help. I gotta stay here and wait for General Kenobi. Our meeting will be in here, so I'm just going to help set up the communicator. " He said.

Rex rolled his eyes and shrugged. "Alright."

A Rodian woman came up to them and spoke in Galactic basic. "There is a storm coming."

Rex almost ran into her. But he stopped himself just in time and blinked. "I beg your pardon, ma'am."

She pointed up at the sky.

"There's a storm coming. You and your troops must hurry, the storms here are violent. Especially in these parts."

Rex nodded in understanding. "Okay, in how much time?" He asked. She tapped a communicator on her wrist. "A couple of hours. The first stage is calmer, the second is worse," Cody butted in. "We will tell our Generals. Thank you."

The Rodian smiled and walks away.

"Codes, now you kn-" Rex tried to say, but Cody interrupted him. "Yes, I know Rex. But we'll probably finish before that even happens. Besides, look at the sky. As clear as a shiny's armor."

Rex scoffed. "That kind of thinking can get you killed." he pointed out.

Cody simply smirked at him and said nothing more.

"Heh, okay. Whatever, don't get mad at me when we get caught out in a storm." Rex walked away. He must get back to his original goal. To help out. Cody yelled, "Hey! I'll notify the Generals though."

Rex turned to raise both hands on either side of his head and shrugged. An amused grin split from ear to ear. He slowly searched the grounds for anyone that might have been struggling. A little Twi-Lek girl suddenly dashed past him, almost took out his legs. She giggled and smiled at him.

Rex chuckled when she continued on her way. She ran toward a table where there were other children of various species. Rex flicked his eyes to his right and exhaled in a breathy laugh of mirth.

Xeon, yet again, heaved too many crates on his own.

"Ah, Xeon! What did I tell you about trying to get these by yourself?" Rex greeted him. Xeon spun around in surprise. He chuckled sheepishly, "Ah, sorry Captain."

Rex took ahold of a crate. And thus, the two of them moved crate after crate of supplies under the shelter. Sweat rolled down the side of his neck after literally 5 minutes of doing this a bunch more times.

_This? This is nothing but a chore._ Rex smiled to himself. He grabbed ahold of another crate handle when a red dot suddenly appeared on it. The dot blinked twice and then solidified. "The kriff," Rex stared at the dot. Then he instantly recognized the telltale target marker of a sniper. On the other side of the camp, an EMP was rolled out from the woods and stopped right beside an unsuspected trooper. "Snipers! Everyone ge-!" Rex tried to yell. But he was too late.

There was an ear-piercing explosion to the North. Many screams from multiple people followed.

The trooper near the EMP was knocked backward and landed on top of a cluster of crates. Every trooper got down low while the villagers ran for their lives, Rex slowly rushed over to get behind cover. His sharp eyes swept the entire area for something that indicated a sniper. A flash of light, a glint, was spotted deep within the forest. They were obviously under attack.

"Everyone get down and take defensive positions!" General Kenobi yelled.

All the villagers were running every which way as they tried to dodge flying shrapnel. EMPs were rolled out and detonated near huddles of supplies. Destroyed huts. And knocked many vod to the ground.

They helplessly sprawled out on the dirt in a daze. Every clone trooper that hadn't been blown up yet, dropped the supplies they carried and quickly moved to defend the village.

"You heard the general! Take defensive positions! Go! Go! Go!" Cody yelled. Cody reached for his DC-15A blaster rifle and crouched next to a crate. Dirt and dust were kicked up into the air. It swarmed the surrounding area in a blanket of blindness. Cody flipped on his heat signature magnifier so then he could see where the enemy was. _Rex was closest to the blast!_ He reached for his wrist and pressed the first button.

"Rex! Where are you?" Cody looked around. His eyes searched through the flying dust, wafting in the air, over the battlefield. Rex suddenly showed up by his side "On your left." Rex smiled and shot one of the clankers down.

"Heh, nice shot!" Cody complimented him.

Rex chuckled to himself. This felt like old times a bit. A blurry figure rushed past them in panic; not a clanker, more fleshy than not. Rex jerked his head to look behind them again to double-check who it was that ran past them. He cursed when he recognized the small, lean figure. It was the little Twi-Lek he saw earlier. "Kriffing–there's a kid running into the woods!" Rex yelled. He stared at the small figure, who stumbled further away. "I'm kind of busy at the moment," Cody gritted his teeth. He shot another droid."The droids might follow her!" Rex argued.

Rex made his way over to the corner of the crate and his eyes filled with concern. Cody rolled his eyes behind his bucket visor. "Go! I'll catch up with you!" He dismissed his companion. Rex nodded and ordered his men to keep defending the village. Then he ran off into the woods. Cody's eyes widened when he spotted four commando droids. They sprinted after Rex. Cody groaned. " Goddammit."

And got up to follow them.

Rex followed the girl's screams. _Geez. She ran pretty far. Heh._ The kid's fast. He got close pretty quickly; and was about to grab her when she stumbled and fell to the leaf-covered ground. He immediately picked her up, to which the girl squeaked in terror. "It's okay, I've got you." Rex cooed. A blaster bolt whizzed by, barely missing his right ear. He turned around to see four commando droids. And spotted, not far behind them, was Cody.

"RUN!" Cody yelled.

* * *

Rex began to sprint as if his life depended on it. The little girl tightly held onto his armor. He hastily searched for any place to hide while he dodged more scarlet. The girl peeked out and started to guide him. "Over there." The girl pointed at the…. _thing?_ Rex decided not to worry about not knowing what it was and approached it anyways. _Better than nothing._

He looked back and noticed Cody shot one of the droids while he simultaneously ran after the dangerous pursers. "I've got her! Go find," Rex's sentence was abruptly interrupted by a pained scream. Who did it come from? Oh. It came from him. That's when he felt incredible, disabling pain rip through his side. He gasped and fell to his knees. But Rex never let go of the girl. He clutched his left side. The blaster bolt had bounced off of Rex's armor, but it hit hard enough, at the speed it was going to do extensive damage to the outer tissue. He pushed the pain back with strong resolve and gathered himself. Then he made sure the girl wasn't hurt too. She wasn't. _Good._

The girl pulled on his armor in alarm. The clankers were getting closer. Rex pushed himself up onto his two wobbly feet and made his way over to the...it didn't matter. _Those droids are too close._ The girl must've been made aware of this place. It was a hideout in a ditch. It looked like the villagers had made it._ Perhaps for these kinds of situations._ _Heh, smart girl._ He quickly slid down the sides of the muddy ditch. An agonized groan was dragged out of him when his wound was rattled. He dropped the girl as softly as possible and moaned again. Quick, wet inhales and exhales escaped him. He clutched his side. Pain rampaged over him like a herd of wild buffalo. Rex huffed. "K-Kriff..." The girl waddled over to him and pulled on his arm.

"Come. Come!" she yelled. After that particular, non-graceful tumble down the slope, Rex could feel something leaking. _Shit, shit, shit, shit._ Rex struggled to his feet and spat out a curse in Mando'a. He limped forward to the best of his ability.

The two of them reached the entrance and managed to get inside a few feet. Eventually. The girl ran straight down into a small room on the right. Rex followed her, with effort, and heaved in agony. He unceremoniously collapsed against a nearby wall. His forearm pressed into the stone. His legs shook from having to keep himself up for so long, and they just wanted to collapse.

Rex's body twitched involuntarily. Then the trembles got stronger with each passing second. Rex pressed the button on his wrist and quickly commed his brother. "Cody, you better get down here quickly!" He groaned. His side stung something fierce. "Kriffing, shit. This hurts." Sweat started to appear on his forehead. It slid down his neck uncomfortably. "I saw where you went, I'm gonna be there in just a moment." Cody rasped into the comm. He sounded slightly out of breath. "Did you fall down there?" His vod asked.

"...Ugh.. y-yes."

Cody heard the stutter. He grimaced in a mixture of amusement and worry. "How was it?" Cody asked.

Rex rolled his eyes and groaned. "Shut up..." He looked down to his right with a concerned expression. The girl had sat down beside him. She returned the stare. Her eyes swam with concern as well for Rex.

Cody's voice faded away. Still sounded panicked as ever.

_ Rex?_

_ Rex?!_

_ Kriff!_

"Are you okay, kid," Rex smiled. The girl nodded. Then suddenly they heard Cody's voice reverberate down the ravine's slope.

"Rex!?"

The girl took off. Skyrocketing towards the entrance, and left Rex behind. He yelped in shock. "No no no! Kid, kid! Ki-GAH! Ah, kriff..." He slumped back against the wall more heavily and blinked. Dark spots crowded his vision. When the little girl reached the entrance, she stared at the Commander, painted in yellow armor, who greeted her there. She ushered him over with a high pitched voice. "He needs help!"

Rex was panting quickly. Tried to keep himself there. Conscious. His vision was starting to blur._ Just for a bit longer. Come on._ He thought to himself.

He focused on his breathing, which was important; something he learned in cadet training. Moments later, he sensed movement to his left and he slowly tipped his head back to look up. Cody stumbled into the room he was in. Behind him, in tow, was the little girl. Cody looked to his left, wrong side of the room. Then Cody looked to his right and instantly spotted the prominent blue 501st armor and Jaig eyes of Rex. Rex sagged against the wall. He clutched his side in a tight grip. Cody gave Rex one quick look over while he approached him. "Shit, okay. It's okay, vod. I'm here now."

Rex just looked absolutely exhausted. And the blaster wound didn't look so bad at first because it looked like a nick from Cody's angle. But once he got closer and leaned to the left a bit, that's when he noticed how bad it truly was. Rex gulped, his skin paled, and he slowly held up his scarlet covered right hand. Decorated in wet purity. Cody made a mental note that Rex probably worsened the wound while he ran here.

"Yeah, slight problem," Rex coughed before he collapsed onto the floor. Cody rushed forth to catch him.

* * *

10 minutes later. Rex's eyes fluttered open. It was so blurry and it tipped from side to side like he was drunk. Cody was in the middle of checking his injury. The top half of Rex's armor had been removed and it brought on shivers of longing. H wanted his armor back. It made him feel safe and strong._ Damn you, Cody._ Rex just noticed the little girl sat next to his head. Her eyes widened when she caught his head tilt.

"He's awake!" She squealed in excitement. Cody immediately looked up from what he was doing. He scooted closer, protectively. "Rex, you alright? Those clankers got you pretty good."

"Y-Y-Yeah, it f-felt great. " Rex murmured sarcastically. "I should punch you for that. But I'm going to refrain from doing so. For your sake anyway." Cody scoffed.

Rex tried to sit up, only to be pushed back down by his vod. "You aren't critically injured, but this could change to that if you KEEP moving." Cody kept his hand on his chest. Rex felt naked without his armor!

"So, that means you will definitely need some patching up." Cody patted him twice and then further inspected the wound.

"Understood. But I need you to help me up so we can–" Rex tried to say, but Cody placed his steady hand right back on his chest. Again. "What part of 'NO MOVING' do you not understand, Rex'ika?" Cody glared at him. Rex stopped because of the endearing word. He stared at Cody for a couple of seconds, and then his vod sighed. Cody's glare softened.

"You are in no condition to walk. You'll only agitate the injury and cause further damage; but only if you move around, of course. So again, as I said; that shouldn't be a problem for you now should it? Vod," Cody's lips twisted up into a teasing smirk. Rex grumbled while his older brother stood back up. Cody popped back on his helmet and also reached for his rifle.

"I'll go back and get help. Be back in no time, and I'm taking the girl with me," H reached for her. The little girl flapped her arms around wildly. "No!" She yelled and latched onto Rex's arm. "I stay with him! Not alone...!"

The room was filled with unwelcome silence.

Cody shook his head. "Kid, he's going to be fine staying here. You, on the other hand, won't be staying. You need to get back to your parents, where you'll be safe." He tried to reason with her. He held out his hand for her to take. She, stubbornly, crossed her tiny arms over her chest and began to pout. The girl shook her head twice. He sighed heavily. "Fine. Stay with Rex, just don't leave his side."

The girl nodded. "Never leave." She said and puffed out her slender chest in determination.

Cody snorted. "Well, that's something you two have in common. Your stubbornness."

"You two will get along just fine. I'll be right back, don't worry." He said.

Rex cleared his throat to get Cody's attention. "Don't forget...a-about the storm." He reminded Cody. His brother nodded. "Don't worry, I got it." Cody offered a reassuring smile and then left the hideout, but not without looking back again, twice. He was worried. Can you blame him?

There was silence for a while.

And then it was finally broken by the little girl's voice.

"We had a loth cat and his name was Rex too!"

"Did you now?" Rex replied. Slightly startled by the sudden breakage of silence. "Yes, he was orange and his eyes were blue, and we fed him rats, and he made funny noises when he pooped. But our Rex wasn't a...Captain? I think." The girl rambled on and on, it was honestly adorable. Rex smiled warmly. Then his golden eyes flicked over to stare at the closed door. He sighed. More explosions rattled the cave.

But at least they were safe under all the commotion above.


	2. Search and Rescue

_**1500 (3:45 p.m.)**_

Cody exited the hideout and had backtracked to where the village was. He knew that it took them 20 minutes to get to the hideout. So Cody needed to pick up the pace. Thunder rumbled 3 klicks North from Cody's position, in the direction the village was in. There were clouds hovering above the treetops, dark and angry-looking; the storm the woman warned them about, it was upon them. The air had turned humid rather quickly, blowing from right to left violently, like a hurricane, like the rocky storms on Kamino. Cody swayed with the wind and fought against it. He rushed forth to hurry up. Raindrops fell heavily from the sky. Cody's footprints were left in the soggy ground with a squelching sound, as he pounded through green bushes and wooded hiding spots.

_Come on!_ He ran for 10 more minutes until he could hear them.

The whirrs of the clankers' gears. They were everywhere. They carried out commands and took out any troopers on the outskirts of the village. it was a warzone. Cody dove for cover and searched high and low, desperately for an opening, so then he could make it back to the village alive. If he did, then Rex could be saved.

_I won't let him die._

5 minutes. 4 minutes. 3 minutes. 2 minutes. 1 minute. A strikingly loud exploded shook the ground. The slippery mud was turning this long run into a kriffing nightmare! Lightning flashed brightly overhead and then loud thunder roared. It pierced his eardrums. Splatters of wet mud flew everywhere, and Cody scrambled and crouched low; he didn't want to be seen by the cluster of clankers. Everything was in chaos. This strange howling sound echoed through the dirt-filled air and the pained cries of brothers rang out from every direction.

Cody paused, He looked back, took two steps. He was checking behind himself. He was worried, hesitant, but he also knew he had to keep going.

_He'll be fine. And the kid will be too, as long as she stays with him. I just hope I can get back there as quickly as possible, Rex's life is depending on me._

Cody finally reached the village, without issue, after a full 20 minutes of running non-stop. The damage was horrific. Cody ducked his head and steered clear of being seen. He had one goal in mind, to get to the Generals. Cody ducked into the closest cover and tightened his hold on his rifle. The hard metal dug into his skin, but he didn't worry about that. The years of training were coming back again, full force, and he had to focus. A vod, in 212th colors, crashed to the ground next to him; with his identically wet armor-covered hand, clutching onto his weapon of choice.

It was covered in blood.

"Kriffing hells! Gotcha! Ha! You good brotha?" The trooper asked. He panted heavily while and shot at the clankers over the log they are hiding behind. Raindrops slid down his plastoid armor, it glistened prettily, as tiny transparent dots scrambled and raced to the very bottom of his thigh plate. "Yeah! Keep at it!" The trooper looked down at his Commander and saluted quickly, before disappearing into the fog.

Now Cody was alone.

* * *

It was about an hour 45 minutes later, exactly 1700 p.m, when the explosions stopped their harassment. When the shrapnel flew no more. And it was dead silent, except for your occasional cries of pain and military boots that pounded into the ground. The storm had yet to stop, it still bellowed above, and it's going to get worse. _That's what the woman said._ Cody's eyes struggled to observe and focus with all this rain that drizzled down on to him. His vision's compromised, but he did spot the General a couple of feet away. He walked past injured villagers, who tried to get to cover, children were crying and were searching for their parents amongst the chaos, and one of his men covered a villager's corpse with a charred blanket.

_Nothing you haven't seen before. Just focus on getting to the General._

Cody knew he wasn't supposed to let this stuff get to him. He was engineered to be tough. He had to focus on the main problem at hand; he had no time to focus on things like this. And yet… He wouldn't admit it unless his life depended on it, but he heard the screams of the injured at night. In his dreams. Cody would wake up to nightly terrors occasionally. That would have only left him with 4 to 5 hours of sleep, and that was it. Cody shook himself from those memories. He continued to look for General Kenobi. He passed several more of his and Rex's men, he quickly checked on them; he yelled over the rain and gave orders here and there. Orders to bring all the injured to one place. To start getting all the citizens inside and stand on guard.

They couldn't tolerate the enemy coming back. They had to remain vigilant, especially in a storm that'll only get worse. Cody just ordered Gearshift and Boil to help the adults get the children out of the rain. Then Cody checked his commlink and cursed colorfully.

_The sun sets at approximately 1700. But because the worse of the storm is on its way, it'll hide the sun, make it harder to see. This is not good. I've studied up on the planet's temperature changes and it drops drastically at night. And with this storm, I doubt it's going to be anything but nasty and difficult._

General Kenobi spotted Cody before Cody spotted him. Kenobi approached Cody with the mother of all serious faces. "Cody, what's the situation?" He yelled over the rain. They got under the cover of a house awning.

"Two villagers dead, sir, 10 injured severely, about 30 more with bruises, but they'll live. Two huts were on fire, but the rain put those out. A lot of the medical supplies were damaged in the firefight. Though we are equipped with enough medkits to help the injured and restock their supplies, for now. But we have to get the citizens out of the rain." Cody ran through the long list of observations and one suggestion.

"I agree. And what about our men," Kenobi raised one eyebrow. He looked behind Cody and watched as a member of the 212th limped away undercover.

"A few of them were injured, some are missing, no known deaths, at the moment. Though Captain Rex is among the missing. He went after a child that ran into the forest," Cody stated and pointed to a path leading into the woods behind him. "He's injured, sir, he was shot by commando droids, left abdomen. But he had the child in his custody. They are fine for now, I was with them, but Rex will need a medic as soon as we can spare one."

Kenobi nodded.

"With this storm, and the time, the sun should be setting; and I learned the planet got pretty cold during the night." Cody shared the news with his General. "We need to set up camp here and plan. But we'll also need to get Rex back. I'll have someone sent out as soon as possible to go get him and the child,"

Obi-Wan stopped Cody from moving any further. He saw the look in Cody's eyes. Worry. "I need you to stay here," Obi-Wan said. Cody stared at him. His steps faltered. _Rex._ He sighed. "Yes sir," Cody saluted. Then he turned around and went to go find Kix and Jesse.

* * *

They were always his go-to when Rex was in trouble. Now ARC Trooper Fives was also a choice, but Rex needed a medic and also Fives had to stay here as well. With Rex gone the 501st needed their ARC to take the lead. Cody found them. He immediately told them what was going on.

"You two, I need your help! Rex is stuck in an underground hideout in the woods. About 3 klicks from here, with a little girl from the village. He needs urgent medical attention and the girl may need some as well. I'll send you the coordinates."

Kix nodded and his commlink beeped immediately. The location had been received.

The medic hummed after receiving the new information and he gathered his supplies. He placed it into his med-pack. "You'll need to get there before the storm gets worse. A Rodian local told me that there were two stages of a storm around here. The first is a breeze, but the second, not good." Cody explained.

Jesse grimaced and he pushed a new clip into his DC-17 blaster. Kix nodded again, with a serious expression on his face. and grabbed his blaster rifle. "We're ready to go, sir. " Jesse announced. Cody dismissed them. The pair ran into the blanketed darkness of the forest.

Cody walked back over to the Generals' temporary HQ.

Inside of a hut, Cody stood beside Obi-Wan. Whatever they were talking about was much more important. Even though Cody wanted Rex to be safe so badly.

"We didn't anticipate any droids being nearby and operating. Or this storm for that matter." Obi-Wan spoke with Skywalker.

"Yeah, but the droids attacked. We had to use a lot of supplies to defend the villagers and now with this storm," Anakin complained. Pointing out the flaws of this battle and the unfairness of the situation.

"Well, Anakin, those supplies saved a lot of lives today, may I remind you. " Obi-Wan said with a sly comeback. "I didn't say that was a bad thing–"

Ashoka interrupted them. "Masters, we must focus on the issue at hand, right Commander Cody?" It seems she just got finished with what she was doing and joined them as well. Cody just nodded along. He'd rather stay out of the Generals' little spats.

"We have to check and recheck the area around the village to make sure there are no stragglers left operating. However, the storm will get worse." Cody said.

Obi-wan raised an eyebrow. "How do you know?"

"A local told me earlier that the storms around here start off in two stages. The first is, of course, less violent. The second is much worse."

Obi-Wan nodded." I believe we should take extra precautions but still continue to aid the injured and also search for missing troopers." He turned to Anakin and Ahsoka. "Commander Cody had also informed me of distressing news, Captain Rex is missing as well." Obi-Wan shared the grave news.

Now the spotlight is on Cody. He stood ramrod-straight, "Yes. He is, along with 10 other soldiers."

Ahsoka frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. "Oh no, Rex. How will we find him in the storm?" She asked and looked to Anakin for a solution or a crazy new idea he might offer. But he didn't say a word, his eyebrows only furrowed more from stress.

"Don't worry, I sent Jesse and Kix to go retrieve him. I know where he is so I gave them the coordinates. Just 3 klicks from here, they should make it before the worse." Rex reassured them. Anakin nodded. He leaned against the table.

"Good. Then, now that's settled, let's start looking for stragglers. Come on, Snips." Anakin, along with Ahsoka, walked away. the flaps opened and a gust of strong wind blew into the room before it closed behind them.

Cody stared down at the holo-table for a bit longer. The meeting was short, but a lot of information was squeezed in that window of time. Now all they needed to do was 4 things: Get citizens inside, search for missing troopers, and stay on guard, and wait out the storm. Other than that, they'll be fine. And Rex should be found soon and will return to them in one piece, hopefully. Cody grabbed his pack, yanked his helmet back on, and opened the flap. The wind smacked him in the face spitefully. The storm had noticeably gotten stronger now. Bight lights were being set up all around.

_Make it back soon, vod._

* * *

It's dark as kriff! The sun was completely gone because of the storm. It made the trees bend. Jesse's nerves were spiking, freaked out about a tree that could fall on him. The rain was heavier than before, it pelted down and crossed through his headlight's rays. The light made the raindrops look like snow.

The ground was covered by luscious green patches of grass and algae. But it's all soggy! Thunder rumbled angrily and the sky erupted in a white glow.

_Oh, lightning, great._

Jesse kriffing hated lightning, even when he grew up on Kamino, a normally stormy and rickety planet; he always hated thunder and lightning. Reminds him of bombs going off. The thunder boomed. And Jesse sucked in air sharply.

"Jesse? You good?" Kix asked from the front.

"Y-Yeah...I-I'm g-good." He responded and shivered. Kix turned to stare at him for 2 seconds and then turned back around. He knew that Jesse hated storms, so he pitied him.

The two brothers made their way swiftly through the woods. The visibleness is nigh impossible to see through. Just pitch darkness and bright ass headlights. Jesse whined in his helmet when his ankles almost got taken out by a kriffing rock. "Kriff. Slippery bastard!" Jesse startled, then he shook himself out of it.

"What are you going on about?" Kix muttered.

"Nothing." he blushed. _Okay, Kix and I have been running for a whole 5 minutes now! Hahahaha! Lucky me! _His comm beeped. The coordinates showed they were a quarter way to the hideout where Rex and the girl were. At some point, Kix ended up behind Jesse, and Jesse-_Oh HELL NO! What's he doing?!_ Jesse jerked to glare over his shoulder and the butt of Kix's blaster poked him in his spine.

"Keep going." The smirk could be heard in Kix's voice. _That sneaky snake!_

Jesse groaned and kept moving. Not really wanting to be upfront. His brother remained in the back, watching his rear, made sure no stragglers snuck up on em.

a stick snapped suddenly. Jesse raised his right hand and gestured hand signals to stop. Kix raised his gun and stood at the ready, all awareness is now keen. Thunder rumbled overhead. _Loud, so kriffing loud._ Jesse turned around and pointed at a large opening that was surrounded by many trees. The grass wavered and blew in the wind. It was so dark. And then it wasn't anymore when the lightning flashed. Right there, visible in the white flash, was a group of stragglers. Their eyes were gleaming with a yellow-ish white glow. They stood very still. Jesse got on his stomach and raised his blaster. He aimed. Kix got behind a tree and also aimed.

They fired at the same time. Just when the thunder rumbled synchronously. The droids went down one by one until there were none. Troopers 1, clankers 0! "Yes! Still got it," Jesse laughed and jumped up.

Kix grabbed him and smacked his shoulder. "Are you crazy?! There could be more of them and you're yelling like that." He scolded him.

"Says the one that's yelling at me while scolding me for yelling. Besides, there's lightning, and...thunder," Jesse scoffed. He made a good point. But Kix was not having it! He glared knives at Jesse. "You better zip that mouth before I zip it for you."

That's the last thing Kix said before he continued on. He left Jesse behind. Jesse was amused. "_Ohhh~_ You'll zip it for me. _Okayy~_" Jesse laughed to himself before he hurried to catch up to Kix.

A minute later they could see the rays of light in the distance. Helmet lights. Streaking through the darkness.

Kriff. It's missing vod. Hold on, Jesse," Kix jolted forward but Jesse caught him by the bicep. "Hold on, how do you know they are...vod? They could be clankers for all we know." He stared at Kix questioningly, highly unsure about this.

"I just do," Kix yanked himself out of Jesse's grip. His baritone voice was serious, straight-forward, and did not leave any room for argument. Jesse nodded and Kix ran forward. Jesse breathed in and out before he followed the best he could on an uneven surface. He still remained vigilant at all times.

Sure enough, they discovered a group of troopers. Five to be exact. 2 were injured and the other 3 were in shock, but otherwise okay.

"The village is back that way. If you think you are able to get there together, here are the coordinates." Kix yelled over the rain. He pressed a couple of buttons on his commlink. The first trooper in the group, a 212th soldier, looked down at his wrist. "Okay, thank you. We'll be able to handle ourselves from here." He said.

Kix nodded. "Okay. Good luck."

The trooper nodded back. Then he moved to help his fellow 212th brother up off the ground. The others got themselves together as well. Kix and Jesse separated themselves from the group. They silently hoped they'll make it back to the village. Kix was now up in the front once again. _Yes, finally! 'Back' at it again! Heh heh, pun intended._ Jesse screeched internally.

And then there were two. Jesse and Kix, in the darkness, alone, with just each other.

12 minutes later. Jesse whispered. "Hey, how much further?" Jesse stared at Kix's backside.

"Not much further. Bout another 8 minutes, give or take, depends on how fast we are. When we're a little closer then I'll comm him. "

Jesse sighed. He's tired because of the firefight back at the village, and also, it's freezing out there. "I swear, if we get there and he's dead, I'll have you revive him and then I'll kill him myself." Jesse murmured.

Kix snorted.

"What do you reckon they're even doing?" Jesse asked him.

* * *

_**1700 (5:35 p.m, nightfall)**_

Rex and the girl did nothing. Of course, they couldn't, they could barely move. It's dark and cold. Thunder was crashing down over the ravine loudly, the girl whimpered every so often when that happened, and it was raining cats and dogs. But there were a few holes in the wall that allowed the tiniest bit of moisture to seep in. There were also a couple of good things Rex could think of: the pain was bearable, the blaster shot didn't seem to have damaged any organs, but it still hurt nonetheless. The bad thing was that: The wound was bleeding now, the outside tissue was damaged by the bolt, which came at him at high speeds. When he ran through the woods, carrying a 34-pound kid in his arms, that's what caused all the fuss.

He hated sitting still. Not being able to do something to help someone. Heck, he couldn't even help himself right now! He was miserable.

"I'm Eida," The girl grinned and offered her hand for a handshake. Rex hesitated for a second, then he reached for her hand with his left, unbloodied hand, and shook it once. "Nice to meet ya, kid. that's a pretty name, by the way." He said. Rex was trying to start a conversation. He just had to break the silence somehow. "Thanks." Eida grinned even wider. Rex chuckled. "And how old are you?" Rex asked.

She held up four fingers. "And you?" Eida asked. She eyed him up and down. Trying to guess his age. "You are 24!" She giggled. "Nah, I'm 12," Rex answered for her. He knew he shouldn't share this because it'll break the poor kid's mind but here he goes.

"...But… you don't look 12! My older brother, Kenzo, is 12 and he doesn't look like you!" She stated. Her large eyes stared him down with doubt.

_How the kriff am I supposed to explain this to a child?_

"Well… you see, where I come from, we age twice as fast as others. I am twelve biologically...umm." _Choose easier words for the little one you di'kut…_ "But I look and think like I'm 24 years old. Does that make sense to you?" he asked, quite proud of how he simplified the term 'accelerated aging'.

"Nooo," Eida began to laugh. Rex laughed along. _Of course, she doesn't understand._ Then he coughed, wincing from the pain his laughter caused him. Sweat rolled down his face and pooled into the dip in his collarbone; the pain is raging up through his stomach. He hissed under his breath. Eida sensed his pain and discomfort. She scooted closer to him in concern. Gawking at the wound he was still holding with his right hand.

_Cody, get back here soon!_ Rex thought.

"Are you okay?" Eida whispered innocently. "Should I go get someone?"

"Absolutely not! It's way too dangerous. The clankers might still be lurking out there. And there's a storm outside. I just can't let you wander off on your own!" He gritted out from between his teeth. Rex looked towards the entrance and tried to sit up a bit more.

"Besides, the battle has died down quite a while ago. I don't hear anything else, " He coughed a bit. "Mm. I'm sure help is on its way. Okay."

Rex tried to ignore the pain. There was a long period of silence again. The tension hovered thickly in the air. Rex and Eida simply sat in the cold room as they were unable to do anything else.

Thunder drummed above. Eida whimpered and sat closer to Rex. He wrapped an arm around her and sighed. He struggled to stay awake. Yes, he was exhausted and still was in a great amount of pain, but he couldn't allow himself to slip away. Especially since he had a child in his care. At that moment, Rex felt the tiny tremors rolling off of Eida, she ran her hands up and down her arms in an attempt to stay warm.

"Wanna lean against me?" He offered.

Eida looked up at him and nods. Rex raised his arm and Eida leaned into his side.

Her skin had gone pale and Eida's less talkative and enthusiastic than before. Rex could tell she was getting tired. It was because she had such a small frame. There isn't much he could do for her other than share body heat. Rex is practically an oven. He raised his chin. An idea crossed his mind. Rex reached for the shirt of his blacks, which Cody had roughly folded, and placed down beside him; and offered it to the shivering child. Rex wrapped it around her, and Eida smiled to herself.

"Thank you," Eida whispered. She nuzzled into the heated padding. Rex somewhat knew how she felt. Being alone. Or being somewhere unknown with someone you weren't familiar with. _She's probably scared, exhausted even. She witnessed a battle unfold right in front of her eyes. And all that running she did. But now she's spending half a day in a dark, cold place, with a stranger who is severely injured._

"I wanna go home". The startling sound made Rex snap back into reality upon hearing her voice.

"I know kid, just hold on a little longer, some of my men are going to come back soon. I promise, alright?" He said with such gentleness. Rex smiled down at her as best as he could, but it turned out to be a grimace. Eida nodded and desperately tried to hold back the tears that were forming in her green eyes.

Eida whimpered.

_Oh no. You did it now._

Rex was many things: a soldier, a Captain, a clone, and a brave guy; that's what his Jaig eyes are for. But a babysitter, especially of a younger child, wasn't one of them. He never spent time with children, maybe his vod'ika was an exception. But that's different. They are Aliit. They aren't strangers. And his brothers—didn't cry! _Okay, maybe that's not true, for some vod._ But usually, his younger vod had trainers that took care of them. It just wasn't the same. Now Rex is alone with Eida and he was at the complete mercy of luck.

"Hey… don't cry, kiddo! It's going to be okay! You're safe, no one's gonna hurt you alright? I'll get you home after the rain stops, okay," he cooed. Rex placed his clean hand on her shoulder. Eida nodded again. Her crying subsided into quiet whimpering.

Rex's comlink blinked and he heard Kix's voice.

"Captain, this is Kix. We're on our way, Commander Cody gave us the coordinates. Are you holding up alright? And there's a kid with ya?" Kix's voice came through the comm.

Rex sat upright. He was so relieved to hear from one of his men. He was even more relieved it was Kix, his medic. Rex pressed the button on his wrist and cocked his head to his left, "Kix! Yes, the kid is with me! Hurry please, we really need to get outta here. Is anyone else with you?"

Kix answered. "Yes, Jesse is with me, sir. We'll be there in a few moments."

Rex sank back against the wall. For a moment, he didn't feel the pain in his abdomen, he didn't feel the cold. He felt relieved.

"See kid, someone's gonna pick us up in just a few more minutes!" He said. Trying to sound extra joyful to help lift the kid's spirits. She visibly relaxed, but then she looked at him with a worried expression. "Do…you know these people?"

Rex smiled. "Yes, they're my brothers. I trust them with my life. You don't have to worry. Kix is a medic, he will first check up on you to see if you're alright and then he's gonna patch me up. Jesse, he's a very nice guy, you're gonna like him, everyone does!" He explained.

"Almost everyone." Rex casually whispered under his breath.

His mind wandered off to the warmth, thinking about his vod, brought. Just for a split moment.

"Do you have more brothers?" Eida asked. She pulled her makeshift blanket around herself a little tighter.

"I have about a 3 mill–"

"Captain?" Jesse's voice echoed off the walls. Rex stopped talking. The smell of rain filled the room, the door was open. "Over here, we're towards the left!" Rex shouted back. He was already trying to straighten up. Rex was ready to get up and get the kriff out of this place.

Jesse and Kix appeared in Rex's line of sight. The headlights on their buckets illuminated the room.


	3. Aaray (Pain)

Footsteps echoed across the wet stone.

"Captain? Rex, are you ok?" Kix asked. He spotted his Captain on the floor before him.

A low grunt was the only response he received so he rushed over to Rex immediately. Kix crouched down next to him, he needed to start treatment right away. Kix was about to lift Rex's hand off the wound but Rex cocked his head to the left and hissed. "Her first, I'm ok."

Kix eyed him doubtfully, but proceeded to get up, and appeared on Rex's left. Kix kneeled before the shivering girl.

He took off his helmet. "Hello there little one, is it okay if I examined you real quick? It won't hurt, I promise!" Kix smiled. He treated many children during other raids and commissions, and the practice of trying to calm down scared vod made it easier too. Eida gazed over at Rex for reassurance. Rex nodded and then Eida looked back to the medic.

"Okay…" She said with a trembling voice.

Kix smiled reassuringly. He pulled a blanket out of his bag and handed it to Eida, who gladly took it and wrapped it around herself. Eida sat patiently as Kix checked her heart, her pulse, and her lungs. He also checked her reflexes and shined a flashlight in her eye. Afterward, she blinked furiously. Kix chuckled. _That's the reaction I'm looking for._ "You are all done, kid. You got a few bruises. But you'll be able to sleep it off."

Eida snuggled back into the warm blankets and stared at the medic. She studied Kix's face and tried to process something. Jesse took off his helmet as well and this confirmed her suspicions. Her eyes grew even wider, "You all look the same!" She pointed in awe. She looked between the three. "As I said, they're my brothers!" Rex said. He smiled as best as he could in his state, but it looked more like a grimace, and Jesse smirked at Eida.

"Sir, you'll have to take your hand off so that I can inspect the wound." Kix pointed out. Now he's back to kneeling beside Rex again. Kix opened his bag and pulled out tools. Rex hesitated because he had his hand on the wound for so long, he felt a little nervous, but he did it anyways with a hiss. His hand shook with effort as he slowly peeled his bloodied hand away from the sticky, painful wound. Kix shined another light onto the injury and inspected it.

"Kriff, I think we have no choice but to start treatment right away. You've been sitting here far too long!" Kix murmured. He handed the flashlight to Jesse so that he had free hands.

"You mean… perform surgery? Right here?" Rex asked.

His eyes widened for a second and then he shivered. _It's starting to hurt quite a lot again._

"Yes, Sir, if you try to move the wound anymore than you already have; it'll only get worse. The blaster bolt must've made an impact with your armor and bounced off, which did some extensive damage to the tissue underneath. That's why you are bleeding. If it had gone through then it would've cauterized it. So, that's why we'll have to perform mild surgery here." Kix explained the best he could.

He read the fear and hesitation in Rex's eyes.

Rex took a deep breath. _Don't be whiny. You're a soldier and you've been worse off than this._ He thought to himself. Rex glanced at Eida, who was staring at the wound with terrified eyes. She looked up at Rex.

"Kid, I need you to go outside, this could turn nasty, I don't want you to see that," Rex said. He tried to shoo her away. Eida's eyes widened even further, and tears started to form once again.

"No! Don't hurt him!" she whined. Eida shuffled closer to Rex. She wrapped her hands around his left arm.

"We're not gonna hurt him, we have to treat his injury. We have anesthesia, uhh, something that'll block the pain. Don't worry." Jesse reassured her. He walked over to Eida and extended his hand for her to take. "No, I'll stay!" she refused and clung to Rex's arm even tighter. Rex holds in a slight groan as her nails dug into his forearm, but she wasn't the reason for his pain, it was the goddamn wound.

"Kid, please you really should–" Rex started.

Eida crossed her arms over her chest once again and pouted. Rex sighed in defeat. He knew that arguing with her was pointless.

"Fine. But please, go over there, you really shouldn't watch something like this." He pointed to the little corner on the other side of the room. Eida nodded. She accepted Rex's terms and slid further away from the three men, but she did not take her eyes off of him. He smiled back at her reassuringly. Then he flinched a second later when Kix started to sterilize the wound. _Here goes nothing._ Rex thought, focusing on a spot on the ceiling as Kix injected a bit of anesthesia close to where it hurt.

"Sir, just so you know, we can only use a bit of anesthesia here because this particular anesthesia doesn't do too well if combined with bacta. I don't want your injury to get worse. So, I'm sorry to tell you this, but I'm afraid you'll have to fight through this one." Kix placed the syringe back into his backpack.

Rex rolled his eyes.

_Of coUrSe. GrEat._

Kix started by delicately removing pieces of dirt, shrapnel, and other things that don't belong in a body, from the wound with tweezers.

_This is–isn't so bad._

Although, Rex could still feel every little thing Kix was doing. That's going to be a problem.

"Yeah, about that—there seems to be some form of unusual crust in some places, an infection's started to develop… we'll have to cut those away, otherwise, the bacta-spray won't properly help with the healing…" Kix said. He glanced at Rex sideways, only to be met with a neutral expression.

"So… it'll...hurt, probably. Sir." Kix repeated himself.

"Yeah, no kidding. Just get on with it so we can get out of here!" Rex gritted through his teeth.

He let his head fall back against the wall again. "Yes, sir. " Kix shrugged. He quickly grabbed a scalpel and steadied his breath.

"I'm gonna start now."

It was completely quiet in the room as Kix slowly cut away the crust of the wound. He placed the pieces on a towel. The only thing that could occasionally be heard was when the Captain's breath caught in his throat, whenever Kix hit an extremely painful spot. Kix was almost done cutting away the last bit of crust when...

***ACHOOOO***

Rex let out a blood-curdling scream. Kix's scalpel dug deep into his flesh. Everyone was startled by the scream and the sudden noise of Eida's sneeze.

"Haar'chak," Rex slammed the back of his head against the wall behind him.

He whined. The abdomen was burning with unbearable pain. Rex moaned and rocked his head from side to side. He was trying to ignore the raging river of lava deep within his abdomen. "Kriffing…. K-K-Kriff… F-F-Force." He trembled violently as the pain smacked into him in rough waves. Like an ocean during a storm. Jesse immediately rushed over to Rex's side, he held Rex down by the chest and tried to calm him; while Kix quickly wiped away the fresh blood that was oozing out of the wound. Rex whimpered again when Kix grazed the jagged edges of broken skin and Rex just turned his chin up towards the ceiling.

All the while, Eida walked backward, away from the man she had hurt.

"M- I'm sorry I–" Eida whimpered. She moved closer to the still grunting Rex.

"I–I didn't–"

"Just be quiet!" Kix shouted. He didn't mean to, but it was because of the tension. He tried to get the scalpel out of Rex while Eida ran out of the room towards the exit. Her cries filled the entirety of the cave. "Kix that wasn't–kriff!" Rex yelled at Kix. Only to get cut off by the excruciating pain rippling around his abdomen. Rex heaved in agony. Tears escaped his eyes. "Jesse," he choked. "Go after her…dont–_kriff!_ Don't let her run away, it's not safe!" He squeezed his eyes shut. Rex tried to move so Kix could patch him up again. Rex held his breath but let it out very quickly. His lips trembled. His head hurts. Everything just hurts.

_Ugh, force, why does it hurt so much?_ Rex thought to himself.

Jesse made sure Kix would be alright on his own before he grabbed the blanket the girl dropped and jogged after her. The tiny sobs still echoed off the walls.

Rex's breaths were drawn in and out in shallow gasps and panting, the wound was burning and black spots were starting to appear. Flooding his vision like a nightmarish monster that wanted its first meal in a long time.

"Hey, Rex, I need you to breathe for me. I know it hurts but you gotta take a breath alright. " Kix's voice said. But he sounded so far away.

Rex took weak, shallow breaths, more heat surrounded his wound and the pain did not leave. Rex followed Kix's direction the best he could. Kix moved to grab the medical equipment again but Rex was trembling too much. _Not good, not good at all ori'vod._ Kix grimaced. He placed his right hand on Rex's left shoulder to calm him. "Sorry sorry, " Rex apologized and tried again. Kix only nodded encouragingly. That seemed to work. Rex stilled. Kix continued what he was doing before while his brother kept up tranquil and steady breaths; he just hoped that Jesse caught up with the kid in time.

* * *

Jesse found Eida and caught up with her. She sat at the exit of the hideout, her cheeks and nose were bright red from the cold and probably from the crying too. She rested her chin on her knees. She leaned against the wall to her right. The rain came down from the sky violently. It all drenched the once dry ground. Thunder rumbled in the distance. Eida did not move an inch.

_Wow, tough kid._

Jesse carefully sat down beside her and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. Eida flinched to the soft contact. "Hey–it's okay. It's only me," Jesse cooed. He took his hand off her shoulder and draped the blanket around her small frame. This blanket protected and shielded her from the humid night air. Jesse and Eida both sat and watched the rain. The white streaks of lightning crossed the ebony sky. The dark forest trees at the top of the ravine bent in the wind. It was strangely beautiful.

"Wow, it's really raining hard, isn't it?" Jesse tries to start a conversation.

Eida sighs, "Yep."

She didn't make eye contact. Jesse sighed. "Yeah."

There was awkward silence yet again. No words were spoken between the two. They just watched the rainfall from the heavens.

"I'm sorry. " She suddenly apologized. Her voice cut through the silence that once existed. Followed by a sob. "It's not your fault, ad'ika. Accidents happen, don't blame yourself." Jesse said calmly. He turned to face her. "He got hurt because of me! I didn't want to hurt him." she sobbed.

New tears forming and rolling down her cheeks, the raindrops mixing with it.

"Rex is fine, I checked on him. He was just startled, nothing more!" Jesse half lied, kind of. Rex was hurt but he'll pull through. Jesse figured that lying was okay in this case. Eida sniffled. "Really?" She quietly asked.

Eida wiped her face with her hands.

"Yep, he's okay. Honestly, I was about to sneeze as well, it's verryyy, dusty down there!" Jesse joked while wiping his nose. Eida let out a giggle. "So, are you ok now ad'ika? Wanna go back inside? I think they should be done by now. And it's drizzling out here." Jesse asked with a small smile. he stood up and offered his hand to pull her up.

She was hesitant. "Aren't they going to be mad at me?" She asked. Her worried gaze stared into his soul. "No, I promise." He replied, and she took his hand. Jesse pulled her up with ease.

They walked back inside to see Rex was sitting upright. He wore a fresh set of blacks.

His skin was slightly pale. But a bit of color had returned. A medical patch was visible through the tight fabric where his wound was. Kix was putting away all the supplies when they both lifted their gaze to Eida and Jesse. "Hey! There you are!" Rex smiled warmly at the sight of Eida. She walked over to him in tiny steps and mumbled, "I'm-I'm sorry." She kept her gaze still on the ground. "What for ad'ika?" Rex questioned. "Yunno…when I sneezed," she explained. She looked up at the medic and Captain. Kix kneeled beside her and with sincerity, he said, "No, I should be the one apologizing. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that, you did nothing wrong. I'm sorry."

Eida hesitated after she heard his apology. Then she smiled and extended her arm, "I accept your apology, sir!" She was trying to sound grown-up. Kix chuckled at her young spirit and took her little hand to shake it lightly.

She then turned to Rex, took a seat beside him, and looked back and forth from his face to his covered up injury. "Are you feeling better now?" She asked. She pointed to his stomach.

"It still needs to heal, but yes, I am feeling better." Rex smiled.

His brothers stood behind the two and watched the cute interaction.

"Hey Rex, it's really raining hard out there. Hopefully, it'll start to calm down soon." Jesse reminded him. Rex nodded.

Kix leans against the wall and sighed. "Then I guess we wait then."

– – –

A few minutes passed and the rain had calmed down considerably. So, the troopers got everything packed up, Rex was wearing most of his armor again, for warmth and protection, and he was being supported by Kix; after he insisted that he could walk alone and almost fell over. Eida was getting sleepy and the night air was extremely cold, so Jesse carried her on his hip to protect her from the tiny raindrops that still fell. It seemed so paternal. Her head lolled to the side slightly with each step that he took.

Rex leaned heavily against Kix and whimpered. The tiny, pained filled sound alone worried Kix. "What's wrong?" He asked.

Rex tilted his head and shook it dizzily, "F-F-Feel hot. C-Can't b-breathe. "

Kix felt his forehead and murmured to himself. His squishy palm felt amazing to Rex. He moaned with a sigh. Jesse looked over. "What?"

Kix dropped his hand and shook his head, "He has a fever, we need to hurry it up a bit." He started to walk a little faster while he looped Rex's left arm around the backside of his neck. Jesse followed and tried his best not to jostle around the sleeping child or slip in the mud.

* * *

_**Corel Village**_

_**Time: 1900 (7:00 p.m.)**_

The sun had completely set hours ago and it is so cold. The storm had finally passed but the smell known as petrichor did permeate the air. It lingered and made the air smell pretty good. The two troopers, that carried Eida and their injured Captain, could hear the squelching of their boots sink into the mud, could smell the earthy scent, could see wisps of smoke in the distance and lights, could taste the moisture in the air in the back of their throats, and could feel the condensation collect on their hard armor.

A lot of voices echoed from the huts that surrounded the outer part of the village. This was the part the group passed by. They overheard the villagers discussing plans, comforting each other, and tucking in the children. They also make out the footsteps that can only be identified as military boots, pounding into the mud, and voices of many brothers who spoke through their helmets with hushed voices; they talked about further action and how much they wished they were on a warmer planet. There were a lot of sounds all around, the village was awake for sure.

As soon as the four walked further into the village, they were immediately recognized and spotted by two brothers in 501st blue. The fellow soldiers approached them in a hurry.

"Captain Rex, sir! Jesse! Kix! You found him." One of them gaped. It was Tup. One of the shinies. He strolled around to Rex's right and supported him with his left arm. "He needs to lie down, come on Captain." Kix led them to the nearest shelter. Dogma, who was the second approacher, started to walk with Jesse. Jesse was still carrying the now slumbering child. "So, what happened?" Dogma asked in his usual loud and nosey voice.

"Shh, keep it down, will you? She's asleep!" Jesse hissed. He gestured to the girl.

"Right. Sorry." Dogma replied, now quieter.

"We found them in a hideout about 3 klicks from here. The Captain was shot while trying to rescue the little one on their way there. That's all I know." Jesse whispered. Dogma nodded. "And what now? Where do we put her?" Dogma asked.

He stared at the kid and raised an eyebrow.

"We are not 'putting' her anywhere. We're gonna find her parents, so she can go home safely!" Jesse said. He rolled his eyes at Dogma.

"I don't think that's our job. She's back in the village, whatever happens to her is not our problem." Dogma replied. Visibly annoyed.

"Leave that up to me, will you? If you won't help me, I'll find the kid's parents myself." Jesse said. He started to walk towards the biggest hut where he assumed the Generals' would be. He walked through the door and immediately trailed over to where the Generals and Commanders were. The group wasn't talking at the moment. They were just staring at a hologram, and it looked like it was one of the Masters from Coruscant.

"Yes Obi-Wan, when you finish up there then come back to Coruscant immediately." They spoke.

"Of course." General Kenobi responded and then the call ended.

Ahsoka turned around when she noticed another's presence behind them.

Jesse stood in the doorway with Eida snuggled into his arms. For a soldier who was placed into violent situations, he shockingly handled her very well! Ahsoka became distracted when her eyes land on the tiny little thing, Ahsoka moved closer and cooed.

"Awww, she's so precious. "

Eida made a gurgling sound. She rubbed her cheek onto Jesse's armor and then she sighed. Then she stopped moving again.

Anakin and Obi-Wan had noticed they came in, but they are too busy conversing about war issues, and about the call they had received a couple of seconds ago.

"What's going on?" Jesse whispered.

"Oh, we'll have to return to Coruscant soon after this," Ahsoka looked at him and shrugged. Then she returned her awe-filled daze onto the child again. Jesse chuckled under his breath. Commander Tano was so predictable when it came to younger children. "You wanna hold her?" Jesse asked

Ashoka nodded with such an eager jerk. Jesse softly handed Eida to Ahsoka and the Padawan immediately walked over to a table in the corner. She cradled the youngling. While Eida was occupied Jesse deemed it the time was right to go ask Commander Cody a question.

"Sir?" Jesse greeted him.

Cody turned around and nodded. He was watching the generals argue again. "Yes."

Jesse straightened up a little at attention. "I have a question, sir, about the villagers. Sir. " Jesse added an unnecessary 'sir' at the end, but it was only because of stress. Cody smiled and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "You can relax. The battle is over and the storm has passed, vod. " He smiled.

Jesse's shoulders slumped slightly. He sighed in relief because sometimes it was hard to stay at attention when you're tired. "Captain Rex rescued this girl. and we rescued them." Jesse pointed to where Ahsoka was sitting. She poked the child on the nose with a soft 'boop' sound to make her laugh. Ahsoka was completely entranced by Eida's adorableness.

"We need to get her back to her parents, but we don't even know how to start looking, Sir. Do you have a solution?" Jesse asked the Commander. Perhaps he would know. Cody hummed in thought. He looked at the girl. "Good question. No one has reported a missing child, maybe her parents are injured. Knocking on every door will take too long and will only further stress the villagers." He said.

He placed a steadying hand on Jesse's shoulder. "We'll find the girl's parents tomorrow."

Jesse nodded in agreement. Cody turned back around, he returned to what he was doing before. _Paperwork._ Jesse remained next to him, "And where will she stay the night, Sir?" Jesse asked. To which Cody turned back around again.

"Uhh, the barracks are too loud. We can't just drop her off at a random house either," Their conversation piqued Ahsoka's attention and she walked over to them. "I'll watch over her, she can stay with me for the night." She offered.

Cody and Jesse exchanged amused glances. Then they nodded in agreement.

"Alright Commander, good luck," Cody smirked and walked away. He took his work with him.

Jesse placed his hand on Eida's forehead and sighed. "Well, guess I gotta head back out. Watch her for me will yah?" Jesse looked at Ahsoka. She smiled. "Of course." And Jesse gave one last look before he left the hut. Ahsoka sat on the bench a little longer till her Master walked over and placed his hand on Eida's head.

"Hm, and who dropped off this little one," He smiled to himself when the little girl snuggled closer to Ahsoka.

"Jesse did. I'm taking care of her till tomorrow, then we're going to look for her parents." She answered. Anakin nodded and slipped away.

"Well, get some sleep snips. The both of you." He smirked and then he left the hut. Ahsoka and Eida stayed inside.

* * *

Rex laid down on a cot in one of the many shelters. He felt so hot and he was confused about where he was. He thought he was back in the Hideout with the kid but then he looked to his left and gazed at a brother. He was laid out on a cot next to him. Rex's vod didn't look too good either. "Hey vod, it looks like you finally woke up." His brother waved at him with a wonky smile. It looked like he was on drugs. "Uhh–"

"Hey! Don't bother, he's conked out too!" Another brother on his right side yelled.

Then the angry vod silenced himself when Coric walked past them.

He gave them an amused glance and smiled in delight.

"H-Hey...C-Coric, don't-"

Coric instantly ignored the brother on Rex's right and walked away.

"Shitttt, now look what you did! He's going to get Kix!" The drugged brother on the left hissed at the other. Rex stares at the ceiling in exhaustion. _Why are they so goddamn loud?_ "It's not m-m-my fault!" The other brother on his right yelled. Then he crossed his arms over his chest with an 'oomph'.

There was a shuffling sound, and then a raspy and brute like voice from the cot on the other side of the tent, yelled. "Hey! Shut up will ya! Before you get us all in trouble." He demanded.

Rex raised his head and smirked when the two on either side of him sat up to defend themselves. This caused a chain reaction of yelling and cussing. Pretty much an all-out brawl of yelling insults back and forth.

The curtains were pulled an every went silent.

Kix walked in with Coric right behind him. The head medic was so intimidating it was scary! He wore a sly smirk on his face, that smile widened when the yelling of insults quieted down. He slowly approached the middle of the room and glanced at every single one of them. He gave them the stinky eye. "So, does anyone want to make anymore commotion and bring more droids down on top of us! Or are you going to be quiet." He asked. without a tone in his voice at all.

It was not a question. If one unaware and unlucky shiny opened their mouth to answer then they are all done for. An unfortunate and innocent shiny, a cot down from the brother on Rex's left, who was also the only one that remained quiet during the verbal brawl, sat up slightly and opened his mouth just a smidge. _Heh. Found the unaware shiny._ Then the brother on Rex's left launched himself over and pressed his hand against the kid's widening mouth.

"Be quiet." The vod whispered in warning to their vod'ika. Who just nodded along nervously.

Kix snorted at and turned around.

"Good. Now go back to sleep, everyone." He said. Kix walked towards Rex's cot with a satisfied grin. He liked maintaining control over the patients. Especially the shinies! Kix was notorious for it. He started to check a couple of things next to Rex and then waited for Coric to finish checking up on his own patient. Coric approached Rex's cot and took some stuff out of his pack.

_Antibiotics. When did we get those?_ Rex wondered.

"Hey Rexter, stay still for us okay," Kix said. He began to unwrap the bandages around Rex's chest and abdomen. Coric stood far away, yet nearby, just in case anything happened at all. The bandages were unwrapped and Kix immediately started to check the wound.

Rex could hear the sound of Coric searching through his pack again, this time for clean bandages. Rex tilted his head down at his stomach and hissed. It looked kind of red.

"It's infected, we'll have to use our antibiotics on it so it can start the process of healing. Then we'll bandage it up." Kix talked Rex through the process of what they were about to do. This usually calmed down his patients.

Rex panted slightly. He gulped. "Okay." Rex nodded.

Kix dabbed the alcohol onto a washcloth and he looked to Coric for confirmation to continue. Coric tightened his grip on Rex's arms and gave a short tilt of his head. Kix's hands lowered down and the washcloth grazed Rex's abdomen. He yelled. Rex groaned while he gritted his teeth and he shut his eyes closed real quick. The antibiotics stung like the fires of hell were dancing on top of his stomach.

It hurt so bad! Kix rubbed it in and then goes for MORE of the stuff. Rex couldn't handle it again. He reacted on an involuntary flight-or-fight response. He tried to get up off the cot, but this made Kix freeze. Coric pressed all his weight onto Rex's arms.

"Ahh, k-kriff! Let g-go! You shabuir!" Rex name-called Coric.

Coric, however, only smiled down at him. Unaffected. He made a _'tsk tsk tsk'_ sound with his tongue. "Insults don't do anything for you, Rex. Just stay still for us and keep breathing please," He calmly continued to hold Rex down.

Kix reached down, again, with the washcloth in his hand. He was ready to wipe it on his abdomen once more. Rex was not ready for that to happen. He watched as the white, not turning pink, cloth, and then peered up at Kix's eyes pleadingly. Kix kept his eyes on his wound, Coric rubbed his shoulder to comfort him. Rex tried to not pull away this time because they asked him not to. The medics already had difficult jobs already and Rex didn't want to make them any more difficult.

"Just breathe, okay," Kix spoke to him softly. And then the cloth made contact with his skin. Rex heaved. He slammed his head down into the pillow behind his head and groaned through his teeth. All the clones in the tent were trying really hard to go to sleep; they definitely would not want to piss off the medics by watching them take care of the Captain. It's very hard, however, not to. If they managed to look away and ignore them, they should earn a gold medal for managing to not be intrusive.

Rex forgot to breathe because he had his mouth clamped shut. The natural reflex of inhaling and exhaling is nigh impossible. He was breathing rather quickly. Rex tried to accommodate the getting-over-the-pain part.

"Rex, breathe for me," Kix whispered. He was moving around. His hand touched Rex's shoulder and Rex blinked the haziness in his vision away. It's all wavering and the stinging in his stomach had died down some. So he attempted to just breathe as Kix said, the medic as breathing, so Rex could too.

"K-Kriffing…Haar'chak." Rex exhaled and shivered.

Coric patted his right shoulder and Kix inspected the wound one last time. He nodded in satisfaction. "You're alright Vod. We should see some improvement by tomorrow." Coric said. He grinned happily. "Yep, you can settle down now Cap," Kix said. He began to wrap up Rex's side while Coric had turned his head and stared at the brother behind him, who was lying on the right side of Rex. He gave the medic something and then smirked. Rex's curiosity was peaked when he spotted something colorful. In his hand was a wrapped piece of candy; the wrapping was red and had a golden stripe on it going down the middle. It's also round. Coric held it in his hand cautiously and Kix spotted it in the corner of his eye. Kix started to laugh to himself and snorted.

"Yeah, he can have it. Rex, this di'kut right next to you says it calms those who are in pain. And guess what, his theory was true. It worked, so, have at it." Kix gave him permission to try the strange orb. Kix gathered up his equipment and Coric shrugged. He tossed the candy over. Rex lazily caught the small orb and stared at it. He glanced over at his fellow bed-ridden brother.

"Do it vod. You won't regret it." His vod nodded with a silly grin. Then he leaned back so he could go back to sleep.

Rex unwrapped it. He observed the tiny thing, and without hesitation, he popped it into his mouth; with everything he went through, a little candy was the least of his concerns even though it was considered contraband. The chocolate melted in his mouth as the saliva began to break it down. Rex hummed in appreciation. The trooper was right, this thing tasted amazing! Rex turned over and snuggled down into the blankets.

Kix came back around and smiled to himself.

"Guess it worked." He asked Rex. "Yeah, definitely," Rex smiled at him.

Kix took the rest of his stuff and touched Rex's forehead again. "Still have a slight fever. Here, drink this and it should be gone by tomorrow."

He handed Rex a small cup filled with liquid. Rex tilted his head back and swallowed half of the white, pasty stuff and he instantly gagged. "Choy bu kriff!" Rex cussed. Kix snorted. He said, "It's not that bad, now take the rest of it and go to sleep. Night." And then he walked away.

"Goodnight Kix," Rex said farewell. He felt slightly disgusted, yet warm and better, the wound had stopped hurting a while ago; and he's just happy. Rex hoped that tomorrow he'll be blessed to see Eida before they most likely got picked up by the larty. But for now, he needed some much-needed rest.

* * *

_**Corel Village**_

_**The next day, 0700 (7:00 a.m.)**_

The beams of the rising sun warmed up the surface of Corellia. Painting the landscape in a warm hue. It felt good to not be in a cold environment anymore. The troops were already up and busied themselves by cleaning up the village, aiding the injured, and slowly started to load up the ships again. Jesse and Kix were ordered by Captain Rex to pick up Eida from the main hut to help her search for her parents. When the two entered the hut, Eida immediately ran towards them and jumped so Jesse could pick her up.

He scooped her up into his arms with ease. "Hey, ad'ika! You slept well, I assume?" He chuckled. Eida nodded, smiling brightly, "Yep!" She wiggled in his grasp, "Glad to hear it." He replied.

"We came to pick you up, it's time to find your parents, don't you think?" Kix chimed in. He motioned for them to go outside. "Yes! I miss them so much!" She squealed. Eida got excited about seeing her family again.

They walked outside and just stood there for a minute. It was quite a big village. Where would they start their search?

"Do you know where your home is? Could you point us in a direction?" Jesse asked Eida while Kix looked around.

"I don't go outside alone, always with my family. But our house is close to a big fireplace and our house has little bells hanging on the door." Eida replied. She tried to picture her home in her head. Once she finished, she then looked around. "I think it's that way!" She yelled and pointed to their left. They started to walk in that general direction. Kix and Jesse pointed to every hut, they asked Eida, 'This one?' or 'Is this it?' every time. To which she shook her head. About a couple minutes passed and Jesse thought about what they could do in the meantime.

"So, what are your parents' names?" Jesse asked, maybe that could help with the search.

"Uhh…" Eida was confused, Kix cleared his throat, "Uhm, I don't think children call their parents by their names, Vod." He replied. He chuckled slightly. "Oh," Jesse replied, dumbfounded. It surprised him, every time they were out on missions, just how _little_ they knew about the norm. They continued to walk for a while. They pointed to more houses and asked Eida if they were hers. Then they reached a fireplace that was surrounded by beautifully painted benches and tree trunks. "This is the fireplace! Oh! Over there! That's my house!" Eida squealed excitedly. She scrambled out of Jesse's arms and ran towards her door.

The two troopers followed her. They came to a halt beside her.

Eida had already knocked on the blue and yellow-painted door, it had intricate swirls and circles painted onto the wood, and purple bells hung from the doorframe. The girl hopped from one leg to the other. A Brunette woman, around the age of 24, opened the door. Her eyes widened immediately and she picked up Eida with a relieved sigh and held her close. The woman stroked her hair. Kix and Jesse watched the pair. The woman looked over her shoulder and shouted, "Lillian! Eida's home! She's back!"

Tears of joy and relief streamed down her smiling face. She turned back to the men, never letting go of her daughter, and grinned. "I can't thank you enough! We were worried sick! Thank you for bringing her back!"

Jesse stepped up to explain what happened. "Actually, Ma'am, our Captain rescued her, not us. She ran into the forest and the clankers followed her. He went after her, saved her, and ended up getting shot. But he's fine now." Jesse glanced over at the medic. Kix nodded.

At that moment, another woman, with black curly hair, ran towards the door. When Eida spotted her, she squealed.

"MOMMY!"

Eida practically jumped into her arms. Meanwhile, the Brunette woman extended her hand to the two men, who both shook it gently. "I cannot express how grateful we are, my wife and I, we didn't want to believe she was..she didn't make it. Our two other children got hurt pretty bad, so we couldn't leave them to go look for her yet! Please tell your Captain how thankful we are! If there's anything we can do," — "Thank you, Ma'am, but it's our job. We're glad the little one is safe now!" Jesse replied. "Then… I'd like to at least thank your Captain personally. If it weren't for him, she might not be… I don't even want to think about it." The woman sighed. She looked at the two soldiers with hope in her eyes.

Her wife came to stand next to her. She placed her free arm around her while she still held their daughter in her other arm.

"I'd like that too! It's the least we could do." Lillian smiled.

Jesse and Kix look at each other. They weren't sure if that was allowed. But they both shrugged. _Sure, why not?_ "The Captain is in one of our shelters, he's still healing, but I don't think he would mind saying goodbye to Eida!" Jesse smiled. He gestured in the direction where the shelters were. "We should go now since we are leaving quite soon." Kix suggested. He checked the time. The two women looked at each other and silently communicated with one another.

"I'll come with you, my wife has to stay with the other kids since you are running out of time." Lillian replied.

The Brunette nodded. She thanked them one last time and gave her daughter a pat on the head. Then she gave her wife a kiss. The door closed behind her.

* * *

The four were on their way back to the shelter. During their walk, they talked about the attack on the village, the crazy storm, and the rescue of Eida. The two men found out that Lillian helped to fight off the droids while her wife tried to find all the village younglings and helped the injured.

"That was very noble of you." Jesse respected her.

They arrived at the shelter a few minutes later and went inside, but they discovered it is way more empty than it was before. Most of the beds were empty and a few troopers were already starting to put away equipment and got ready for pickup. To their left was Rex. He was sitting on his bed, leaning against the wall behind him. He was reading a holo-pad.

When Eida spotted him, she wiggled out of her mom's grasp and ran towards him. She jumped onto his bed, which almost caused him to almost dropped the holo-pad; startled by the sudden movement. When he realized it was Eida though, he smiled brightly. "Hey there ad'ika! Glad to see you're okay!" He said warmly.

He placed the holo-pad beside him on the table.

"Yes! Your brothers took me back home! That's my mommy!" She said excitedly. Eida pointed to Lillian, who approached the bed. She extended her hand to the Captain. He took it and offered a small bow of his head. "Captain, you have our eternal gratitude. Without you, our daughter would've never made it home. Everything you and your troops have done to protect the village will never be forgotten." Lillian gestured to him and the many men who gathered their equipment, with a soft, motherly smile on her face.

The gratitude was gleaming brightly in her eyes like the hot orb of Helios. Rex felt a bit of warmth crawl up to his face. Not many people thanked him for his work, his sacrifices, and his suffering. He'd accepted awards, medals, and even the Jaig eyes, that now rested upon his helmet; but they were never like this. He looked at her and then at Eida.

"Uh, thank you, Ma'am. But this is our job, it's what I was trained to do. I'm glad to know that the little one is safe!" Rex smiled, trying to sound formal.

The woman smiles back.

"If there is anything you'll ever need, our family will forever be in your debt." She replied sincerely.

Rex looked at her and wanted to reply but figured it would be best to just simply nod in appreciation, so he did. They both smiled at Eida, who was playing with the clean roll of bandages that she found at the edge of the bed. She tried to neaten it up again. The three of them kept up a light conversation for a few more minutes until a trooper, in 212th colors, approached Rex's bed, and stood at attention.

"Sir, everything is packed up and is being brought back to the ships, we're leaving at 1000, " He said. He handed a datapad to the Captain. "Understood. Thank you. " Rex dismissed the trooper before he read the pad. The trooper saluted, Eida watched the military gesture in awe, then the trooper walked away.

"Well, I guess I better get up, before they put me away along with the medical supplies." Rex joked. He started to get up. "And I think it's our time to leave, tell the Captain goodbye Eida." Lillian said to her child, who was looking up at Rex with big wet eyes.

"Can't you stay?" Eida asked, tears welling up. Rex sighed.

That was a dream far too big for any clone out there. They've all dreamt and wondered what life would be like after the war. Would t be normal? Would they still work for the army but would be granted equal rights and payment? Or would they be killed off after they are no longer needed? They would never know unless they survived the war. But during the war, there was no peace. Rex didn't want to hurt the child. _Don't get attached._ He thought, but he knew it was already too late.

He would miss the little ad'ika.

"I… gotta go home, just like you did little one." Rex sighed.

He couldn't give her the, 'I'm a soldier and I have a duty' speech, she was too young to understand. But the one thing she definitely would never hear from him was the truth. That he was 'a slave to the Republic', and had no other choice but to 'follow orders'.

"Will you… will you come back to visit? Please?" Eida sniffled.

_Haar'chak! Why is this so difficult?_

It broke Rex's heart. Again, he would love to come back. But he knew there may be likely chance he'll never see Eida again. "One day, I will. We'll see each other again, little one. Okay?" Was all he could say. It's a half-lie. He didn't exactly know when the war would come to a head. Hopefully with the Republic's victory and the Separatists' downfall. And he also didn't know if he'd die before he even witnessed that glorious day. And survive PAST it. So this promise, simply couldn't be made without making Rex feel guilty about it. But he couldn't bear to look into the child's eyes and see her heartbreak, so, half-lie it is.

Eida sniffled and began to cry. She crawled over to the Captain to hug him. She tried to hold back her sniffles as well as possible. Rex was startled by this, he wasn't used to hugs, but he smiled and patted her soft hair.

"Okay," Eida responded. She sighed into his chest. A small, hopeful, at peace of a smile crept up onto her young face. Rex's core felt warm. Like something in his heart was budding, a protective feeling, he's had that feeling before when he bonded with his brothers between battles and during cadet training on Kamino. It made him feel good, like he was just, happy.


End file.
